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Chapter Text

Daryl is leading them all on his bike, while Rick is driving behind him with Lori, Carl, Carol and Sophia.

Rick is watching Daryl's back as he drives, not really focusing on the road anymore. He's pulled out of his daze by Lori, "I was just thinking about our trip to the Grand Canyon" she says.

Rick laughs, remembering the trip that they took with Shane and Daryl after Carl was born.

"I don't remember that" Carl says. "No, you wouldn't. You were just a baby." Lori tells him, "besides, we never made it past Fort Worth."

Rick pipes in then "No, you got sick. I never knew a baby could throw up so much." Lori laughs "The doctor in Texas said you'd live. Then we turned around and drove home."

"That sucks" Carl tells them. "No, it was a good trip." Lori says.

"Can we go see it? The Grand Canyon?" Carl asks "I'd like to." "I would too." Sophia adds. "Can we go?" She asks.

"We'd never go without you or your mom. That's a promise." Rick answers.

~~~~~

"It's all good" Dale tells Rick just before he's about to go off with Daryl through the cars to see what's up ahead.

Rick jogs to catch up with Daryl, when he does Daryl turns to look at him and Rick's breath is caught in his throat when he sees how beautiful his husband is.

His hair has grown longer, it's at that stage that's perfect to run your fingers through, his arms have dirt and sweat dried on them. But his eyes shine like a perfect summer day sky.

Rick takes his hand and smiles "hey" he whispers. Daryl smiles back "hi" he answers.

They walk through all the cars silently, their joined hands swinging between them.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Rick asks him. Daryl chuckles "you got a penny?" He asks.

Rick grins before holding a dime up between them "I could only find a dime" he says. Daryl takes it anyway.

They're quiet for a moment but Rick knows better than to rush Daryl to speak. "I was just thinking that maybe I should teach you how to ride my bike" Daryl tells him.

Rick knows that's not what he was really thinking, but he'll go along with it. "Were you now? Why would I want to ride your bike?" Rick asks.

Daryl shrugs "just in case" he says simply. Rick think's over a good response "ok, you can teach me later, but we gotta head back to the group" Rick tells him.

Daryl nods and look around them before wrapping his hand around the back of Rick's neck and pulls him in, kissing him deeply. It wasn't often that Daryl took control like that, but Rick loved it when he did.

Rick wrapped his arms around Daryl's back, they kissed for a few more seconds before Daryl pulled away and rested their foreheads together "I'm sorry, I just wanted..." Daryl says trailing off.

Rick hugs him and feels Daryl tuck his face into the crook of Rick's neck. Rick shakes his head "you don't gotta be sorry, you can touch me anytime, doesn't matter where we are" Rick tells him softly.

Daryl doesn't respond but eventually they separate and Rick whines at the loss of warmth. Daryl laughs and pokes him in the stomach. Rick shakes his head fondly and takes Daryl's hand, stroking his thumb over the back of it. They start their way back to where the group is.

Rick looks through the scope on his rifle in time to see a herd of walkers coming their way. They run to where Lori and Carl are with Carol and Sophia.

"Lori, under the cars!" He whisper/yells to her. They get down under the cars, Daryl going under the one beside him.

Rick looks at Daryl but he is looking around, he seems to be looking for someone. All of a sudden Daryl rolls out from under the car, jumps up, and silently leaves.

Rick curses under his breath, he's about to get up and follow his insane husband but stops when he realizes how close the walkers are.

Rick keeps watching the way Daryl went, silently hoping that he's okay.

He waits a few moments after the last walker passes and quickly gets out from under the car.

He hears Daryl curse from a couple of cars over and runs that way. He turns the corner where Daryl is struggling to push off a thankfully dead body from himself.

Rick hurries to lift it off of him and pulls Daryl up from the ground. He quickly wraps him in his arms and presses a kiss to his hair.

"Why'd you leave?! Are you insane?" Rick asks. Daryl pushes him off of himself and before he can say anything he hears T-Dog groan a couple metres over.

Just then they hear Sophia crying and look over to see her be chased into the woods by two walkers. Rick has noticed that Daryl's been getting close with the girl and her mom Carol.

Daryl grabs his crossbow from the ground and is about to run off after Sophia but Rick stops him with a hand to his chest "stay with T, I'll get her" he says and Rick waits for Daryl to nod before grabbing his rifle and running after the girl.

~~~~~

"Sure this is the spot?" Daryl asks looking into the tree roots where Rick left Sophia.

"I left her right here. I drew the walkers way off in that direction up the creek." Rick tells him retracing his steps.

"Without a paddle- seems where we've landed." Daryl says deciding it was the perfect time for a metaphor.

"She was gone by the time I got back here. I figured she just took off and ran back to the group. I told her to go that way and keep the sun on her left shoulder. Just like you taught me." Rick continues to tell him.

"Hey, short round, why don't you step off to one side? You're mucking up the trail." Daryl tells Glenn. Glenn looks down confusedly but steps away. 'Daryl does have a way with words' Rick think's to himself.

"Assuming she knows her left from her right." Shane says to him "Shane, she understood me fine." Rick defends.

Shane takes a breath "kids tired and scared, man. She had her a close call with two walkers. Got to wonder how much of what you said stuck."

"Got clear prints right here. She did like you said, headed back to the highway. Let's spread out, make our way back." Daryl says, effectively interrupting them.

Daryl climbs out of the river and then offers a hand to Rick and pulls him out. "We'll find her" Rick tells Daryl.

Rick watches as Daryl somehow moves silently through the woods, even with dried leaves on the ground. Daryl kneels down to look at something in the leaves. "She was doing just fine till right here. All she had to do was keep going. She veered off that way." Daryl says pointing to the right.

"Why would she do that?" Glenn asks. "Maybe she saw something that spooked her, made her run off." Shane suggests. "A walker?" Glenn asks.

Daryl shakes his head "I don't see any other footprints. Just hers." Daryl says studying the ground.

"So what do we do? All of us press on?" Shane asks "no, better if you and Glenn get back up to the highway. People are gonna start panicking. Let them know we're on her trail doing everything we can. But most of all, keep everybody calm." Rick tells Shane.

"I'll keep 'em busy scavenging cars. Think up a few other chores. I'll keep 'em occupied. Come on." Shane says.

Shane and Glenn walk away, leaving Rick and Daryl alone. Daryl points off to the right again and goes through the trees, Rick looks around and then follows him.

Rick has to jog to keep up with Daryl. When Daryl stops to study the ground again Rick comes up behind him and wraps his arms around his stomach. Rick presses his lips against the back of Daryl neck.

Daryl, obviously not expecting anyone to be touching him, flinched hard and pushed Rick away. Daryl turned to face him and Rick sees hurt and anger in his blue eyes.

"Daryl... We'll find her." Rick tells him when he can't think of anything else to say. This seems to just make it worse.

"Don' need you babyin' on me!" Daryl tells him angrily, misunderstanding the cause for Rick's actions, before storming away. The entire time walking through the woods, this is the first time that Daryl has made a noise in the leaves and sticks. That's how Rick knows that Daryl really is angry and is bottling it all inside again.

Rick sighs and follows behind "Tracks are gone" Rick says after a while when he can't see anymore snapped branches.

If Daryl ever scoffed, Rick think's that he would've now "no, they're faint" Daryl says "they ain't gone. She came through here."

Rick think's this is good ground for a conversation, talking about something that Daryl enjoys and knows a lot about, so he starts to ask a question. "How can you tell?" Rick asks. "I don't see anything. Dirt, grass." Rick adds.

Daryl keeps walking "you want a lesson in tracking or you want to find that girl and get our ass off that interstate?" Daryl says bitterly.

Rick sighs again and follows silently, he's not going to get anywhere when Daryl is mad.

They walk silently for a while until they hear rustling nearby. They both crouch down, Daryl already has his crossbow drawn, Rick looks back at Daryl when they see the walker.

Daryl silently tells him to go one way while he goes the other with his hands and eyes. Rick distracts the walkers as Daryl shoots him with his bow.

Rick watches as Daryl pulls out his arrow, then he starts to search the walkers hands.

"What are you looking for?" Daryl asks, it's the first sentence he's spoke for nearly the past hour. "Skin under the fingernails." Rick tells him calmly.

"It fed recently. There's flesh caught in it's teeth." Rick adds. "Yeah, what kind of flesh?" Daryl asks.

Rick starts to pull out his knife "only one way to know for sure." He says and is about to cut it open when Daryl steps over the body "here, I'll do it." At Rick's questioning look Daryl adds "how many kills you skin and gut in your life? Anyway, mine is sharper." Daryl says and drives his knife through the skin.

The whole time Rick watches he keeps a grimace on his face, all he can think is 'you're not touching me for a while buddy'.

Rick has to look away for most of it, or he might vomit all over Daryl. As Daryl is slicing through the body he looks over his shoulder at Rick, and Rick might've thought he was being flirtatious if he didn't know any better. Daryl was being an ass. He decides on.

"Now comes the bad part" Daryl tells him, Rick is about to ask what, but Daryl is already shoving his hands into the things stomach. 'Nope, definitely not touching me for a while' Rick think's to himself.

Rick has to close his eyes. "Yeah, Hoss had a big meal not long ago. I feel it in there." Daryl dumps something in front of him.

"Here's the gut bag" Daryl says almost proudly. "I got this" Rick tells him.

Rick takes a breath before slicing it open. Daryl pulls out something on his knife "This gross bastard had himself a woodchuck for lunch" Daryl says looking at the thing on his knife.

Daryl stands up "at least we know" Rick says and stands up "at least we know" Daryl repeats Rick's words.

They walk for a couple minutes in silence until Rick can't take it anymore. He grabs Daryl's hand to stop him.

"I'm sorry for earlier" Rick tells him. Daryl nods and shrugs "it's fine, I overreacted" Daryl says, Rick takes him in his arms "no you didn't, baby" he whispers into his hair. They stand there for a minute or two. They part and start silently making their way back to the highway. Daryl walks silently again. Rick is glad.

~~~~~

When they break through the tree line, Rick isn't surprised to see Carol there. "You didn't find her?" She asks. "Her trail went cold. We'll pick it up again at first light." Rick tells her.

"You can't leave my daughter out there on her own to spend the night alone in the woods." Carol cries "out in the dark's no good. We'd just be tripping over ourselves. More people get lost." Daryl explains.

"But she's 12. She can't be out there on her own. You didn't find anything?" Carol asks. "I know this is hard. But I'm asking you not to panic. We know she was out there." Rick says.

"And we tracked her for a while." Daryl adds. "We have to make this an organized effort. Daryl knows the woods better than anybody. I've asked him to oversee this." Rick says. He never actually asked him, but Rick knows he won't mind, he'd probably go out anyway.

"Is that blood?" Carol asks looking at Daryl. Rick waits for Daryl to explain, but he doesn't. "We took down a walker. There was no sign it was ever anywhere near Sophia." Rick says.

"How can you know that?" Andrea asks. Rick looks at Daryl and silently asks him to answer. He does. "We cut the son of a bitch open, made sure." Daryl tells her.

"How could you just leave her out there to begin with? How could you just leave her?" Carol asks. Rick breathes "those two walkers were on us. I had to draw them off. It was her best chance." Rick explains.

"Sounds like he didn't have a choice, Carol." Shane says coming to the rescue.

"How was she supposed to find her way back on her own? She's just a child. She's just a child." Carol starts crying.

Rick crouches down in front of her "it was my only option. The only choice I could make." He tries to explain. He wishes Daryl was more of a talker so he could come and help, unfortunately Daryl doesn't understand the difference between babying and helping.

"My little girl got left in the woods." Carol says.

Rick doesn't know what to do, luckily Daryl chooses that moment to help. He comes and motions for Rick to follow him away from Carol. He goes.

He and Daryl fall asleep away from the group, curled together beside a car. He doesn't sleep much that night. Just plays with Daryl's hair and keeps watch.

~~~~~

"Everybody takes a weapon" Rick says when he rolls out a bunch of different axes.

"These aren't the kind of weapons we need. What about the guns?" Andrea asks "we've been over that. Daryl, Rick and I are carrying. We can't have people popping off rounds every time a tree rustles." Shane says.

"It's not the trees I'm worried about." Andrea comments. "Say somebody fires at the wrong moment, a herd happens to be passing by. See, then it's game over for all of us. So you need to get over it." Shane tells her.

"The idea is to take the creek up about five miles, turn around and come back down the other side. Chances are she'll be by the creek. It's her only landmark." Daryl says wisely. "Stay quiet and stay sharp. Keep space between you but always stay within sight of each other." Rick adds.

"Everybody assemble your packs." Shane tells them. "Dale, keep on those repairs. We've got to get this R.V. ready to move." Rick tells Dale. "We won't stay here a minute longer than we have to. Good luck out there. Bring Sophia back." Dale tells him.

~~~~~

Daryl is leading the way through the woods when they all come across a tent. "Could be a whole bunch of things in there" Daryl says as he's creeping forward.

Rick tells the rest of them to stay before following. Daryl tells him through hand signals to stay and that he's going to check it out himself.

Rick watches worriedly as Daryl walks around the tent, Rick can't take it anymore and follows him. Daryl carefully opens the zipper and opens the flap. Daryl coughs and goes in.

When Daryl finally comes back out Rick lets out a relieved breath. "It ain't her." He tells them "what's in there?" Andrea asks him. "Some guy. Did what Jenner said. Opted out. Ain't that what he called it?" He asks no one in particular.

They suddenly hear church bells ringing in the distance. They immediately start jogging in that direction.

~~~~~

They come to a church. They cautiously open the door and find a couple walkers sitting in the pews.

They quickly dispose of them. "Yo, J.C., taking requests?" He hears Daryl asks the cross.

The bells ring again so they rush back outside to find out it's just a speaker.

~~~~~

He tries not to listen as Carol prays, but the whole time he watches Daryl as he fidgets. "I prayed for Ed to be punished for laying his hands on me and for looking at his own daughter with whatever sickness was growing in his soul."

When she gets to that part, he watches as Daryl walks out, he goes to follow him but by the time Rick gets outside Daryl was already disappearing into the woods.

Rick knew he'd come back when he was ready so he let him go.

Daryl comes back just before they're about to leave, Rick tries to talk to him or at least make eye contact but Daryl is avoiding him.

Later when they split up, Daryl seems only mildly concerned, Rick think's he might actually be happy to get time away.

~~~~~

When Rick sees the deer, he first think's 'if only Daryl were here to see it'. Then Carl gets shot....

Chapter Text

Daryl was laying under a motorcycle in the garage, he worked in an actual mechanic shop but sometimes he got special requests like this one that he preferred to work on at his personal work station (his home that he shared with Rick).

He hears the distinct sound of the engine of Rick's police car from a couple streets over. He thinks about standing up but doesn't, he and Rick had an argument earlier and he didn't want to get yelled at again. Hiding under a bike was easier than facing an upset Rick Grimes.

He listens as the car pulls up the driveway and looks at the clock on the wall. He notes that Rick wasn't supposed to be home for at least another 4 hours.

When he hears the car door open, he immediately notices that those aren't Rick's clompy footsteps, but someone else's. That's what gets Daryl to stand up and open the garage door.

He sees Shane who was about to knock on the front door but stops when he seen Daryl. Shane comes back down the stairs to stand in front of Daryl.

Daryl looks at Shane's grim face and wipes his hands on the red bandanna he keeps in his back pocket.

"Is he alive?" Daryl asks immediately going to the worst possible scenario. Shane shakes his head "he's in surgery, he got shot" Shane says leaving out the part that it was his fault he never seen the third person.

Daryl breathes deeply, letting his hunter side take over the insecure part of him that just wants to curl in a ball.

"Can I see him?" Daryl asks trying to keep his face from betraying to much emotion.

"Of course. C'mon I'll take you" Shane says laying his hand on Daryl's shoulder. Daryl flinches away and turns to his own bike "it's fine" he says shortly before taking his keys out of his pocket and climbing on. "Let's go" he says before taking off from the garage, trusting Shane enough to close the garage door.

~~~~~

Rick is running with Otis behind Shane who is carrying Carl in his arms. "How far? How far?!" Shane yells at Otis.

"Another half mile that way. Hershel. Talk to Hershel. He'll help your boy." Otis tells Shane breathlessly. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry" he keeps repeating.

Rick pushes Otis along with him. Shane has ran off ahead with Carl. "Come on." Rick encourages.

~~~~~

Shane comes up to the house where a bunch of people have gathered in the porch. "Was he bit?" An old man asks. "Shot. By your man. He said find Hershel. Is that you? Help me. Help my boy." Shane begs "get him inside." The old man tells him.

The man starts ordering off commands to his family. Shane lays Carl on the bed, Rick must have caught up at some point because he's right behind Shane the whole time.

A bunch of things start happening at once. Shane looks like he's seen a ghost, he keeps whispering "is he alive? Is he alive?" To himself.

Rick takes charge for him, he grabs the pillowcases that Hershel asks him to. He has to hold it on Carl's stomach.

"I've got a heartbeat. It's faint." Hershel says, Rick think's that might be the best thing he's ever heard, besides the words 'I do' of course.

They make him step back as they take over.

Rick goes out to the porch where Shane is. He looks horrible, he's sitting on stairs with Carl's blood on his face and hands. "I can't stand to see him like that, man. I can't see my boy die." He says when he sees Rick.

Rick steels himself before taking out Daryl's red bandanna that he stole from him a couple days ago, it's like a game, anytime Daryl leaves it lying somewhere Rick will come and take it until Daryl notices. They used to do this before the world ended.

Rick starts to wipe the blood off of Shane's face "he's fine. He's alive. He's not going anywhere." Rick keeps repeating to him until Shane comes back to himself enough to understand.

Shane stands up all of a sudden "where is he? Where is he?" He asks going inside.

Rick looks at the boy on the bed, incredibly pale and bleeding. "You know his blood type?" Hershel asks them.

"A-positive." Shane tells them "same as mine." Rick adds hoping that he can help in some way.

"That's fortunate. Don't wander too far. I'm gonna need you." Hershel says. Otis tells them the story of how he accidentally shot Carl through the deer.

"Lori doesn't know." Shane starts saying. "My wife doesn't know. My wife doesn't know."

~~~~~

"It was a gunshot." Lori says worriedly. "We all heard it." Daryl says.

"Why one? Why just one gunshot?" She asks. "Maybe they took down a walker." Daryl suggests shrugging, he was trying to play it cool and not let it show how worried he really was. "Please don't patronize me. You of all people know Rick wouldn't risk a gunshot to put down one walker. Or Shane. They'd do it quietly." Lori says looking around.

"Shouldn't they have caught up with us by now?" Carol asks. Daryl steps in, "There's nothing we can do about it anyway. Can't run around these woods chasing echoes." He says staying calm.

"So what do we do?" Lori asks. "Same as we've been. Beat the bush for Sophia, work our way back to the highway." He says.

"I'm sure they'll hook up with us back at the R.V." Andrea says backing him up. They all start to keep walking except for Andrea and Carol.

"I'm sorry for what you're going through. I know how you feel." Andrea tells Carol. "I suppose you do. Thank you. The thought of her out here by herself... It's the not knowing that's killing me. I just keep hoping and praying she doesn't wind up like Amy." Carol says immediately feeling guilty about the last sentence "oh God. That's the worst thing I ever said." Carol says.

Andrea shakes her head "we're all hoping and praying with you, for what it's worth." Andrea says.

Daryl decides to butt in then "I'll tell you what it's worth- not a damn thing. It's a waste of time all this hoping and praying. Cause we're gonna locate that little girl, she's gonna be just fine. Am I the only one zen around here? Good lord." Daryl says before walking away.

Lori is holding back laughter as she starts walking 'if only Rick could've seen that' she thinks to herself.

~~~~~

"Why'd I let him come with us? I should have sent him with Lori." Shane starts saying. "You know, you start that, you'll never stop." Rick tells him.

"Rick!" A girl calls through the door "he needs blood." Rick stands up and rushes to the next room, Shane right behind him the whole time.

Carl is crying and groaning on the bed, "you, hold him down." Hershel tells Shane. Shane does it, whispering to Carl that he's gonna be okay.

"A woman shoves an I.V. into his arm but he barely notices, too busy watching Carl scream every time Hershel moves. "Stop! You're killing him!" Rick yells at him.

"Rick, do you want him to live?" Hershel says. The screaming stops and he and Shane both look at Hershel worriedly "he just passed out" Hershel says calmly.

~~~~~

"Lori needs to be here. She doesn't even know what's going on. I've gotta go find her. Bring her back." Shane starts saying again. "You can't do that." Hershel tells him. "She's his mother. She needs to know what's happened. Her sons lying here shot."

Hershel looks at them both. "He's going to need more blood, Rick can't leave. And I'd be surprised if you can even walk straight." Hershel says pointing to Shane.

He and Shane don't say anything and leave the room.

Shane stands and Rick sits down in a chair, he's feeling dizzy from the blood loss. "He's stable for now." Rick tells everyone.

"Lori has to be here Rick, she has to know." Shane says again. "Okay, I get that. We're gonna handle it. But you've gotta handle your end." Rick tells him.

"My- my end?" Shane asks. Rick gets up and stands in front of him. "Your end is being here for your son. There is no way I'd ever let you walk out that door. Man, I'd break your legs if you tried. You know that, right?" Rick asks him.

Shane stayed quiet so Rick continued, "If something happened to him and you weren't here... If- if he slipped away while you were gone, you would never forgive yourself for that. And neither would Lori." Rick tells him, it kills him to ever think that Carl could die, but it was a very real possibility, one that Shane had to come to terms with.

Rick watches Shane process his words. "You're right." Shane says shakily. Rick smirks "when was I ever wrong?" He says cockily, trying to lighten the mood a bit, that always seemed to work with Daryl so he hoped it would have the same effect now.

They're quiet again until Shane speaks. "You know, when- when you were in that hospital, the one you were never supposed to leave, man, you should have seen Daryl. She was like... The strength of that man..." He laughs "you can't imagine it. See- see that's what I've got to have now. I mean, Carl- he needs that from me. So you wire yourself tight, man." Rick think's he's talking to himself now, but he can't be sure so he continues to respond with little 'mmhmms' every now and then.

Hershel walks through the door a moment later "he's out of danger for the moment." He tells them and then goes on to tell them that he needs surgery.

"What'll it take?" Rick asks when it seems Shane isn't able to. "You'll need a respirator. What else?" Otis says. "The tube that goes with it, extra surgical supplies, drapes, sutures." Hershel tells them. "If you had all that you could save him?" Rick asks. "If I had all that, I could try." Hershel corrects.

"Nearest hospital went up in flames a month ago. The high school" Otis says. "That's what I was thinking. They set up a fema shelter there. They would have everything we need." Hershel responds.

"The place was overrun last time I saw it. You couldn't get near it. Maybe it's better now." Otis trails off. "I'll go." Shane tells them "you can't, Carl needs you here." Rick immediately tells him. "No, Carl needs you here, he also needs those medical supplies, I gotta do this, I can't just sit around waiting for my son to die." Shane says. Rick sighs, he hates this, but he agrees.

"Doc, why don't you do me a list and draw me a map?" Shane asks. "You won't need a map. I'll take you there. Ain't but five miles."

"Where is she? Your wife?" Maggie asks Shane.

~~~~~

"We'll lose the light before too long. I think we should call it." Daryl says when they come to another stop. "Let's head back." Lori says.

"We'll pick it up again tomorrow?" Carol asks. "Yeah, we'll find her tomorrow." Lori says.

Daryl whistles to get their attention and motions for them to keep walking.

Daryl has been trying to keep a level head but every minute that passes and Rick hasn't caught up he's getting more and more worried.

~~~~~

"Just get what you need and get out of there. You stay strong, all right?" Rick tells Shane when they're packing up an old pick up truck.

Rick goes up to Otis and hands him his gun. "That's a fine weapon Rick. I'll bring it back in good shape." Otis tells him before taking it.

Rick watches them drive off, he hasn't had much time to think about Daryl, but now that he is, he's filled with worry that his lover is in danger somewhere. He knows that he should've caught up to Daryl by now, and that Daryl must've started to get worried, but he hopes that he's alright.

~~~~~

"How much farther?" Lori asks as they're heading back to the highway. "Not much. Maybe a hundred yards as the crow flies." Daryl answers. "Too bad we're not crows." Andrea mutters.

They keep walking when they hear Andrea screaming. "Andrea?" Lori calls out. They all run in the direction of the screams.

Just before they get there a girl on a horse pulls up with a bat and hits the walker off of Andrea. "Lori? Lori Grimes?" The girl is calling.

Lori steps up to her. "I'm Lori." She says. "Rick and Shane sent me. You've got to come now." The girls says. "What?" Lori asks. "There's been an accident. Carl's been shot. He's still alive but you've got to come now. Shane needs you. Just come." The girl says.

"Whoa whoa whoa. We don't know this girl. You can't get on that horse." Daryl says as Lori climbs onto the horse. "I take it your Daryl? Rick told me about you too. Rick said you had others on the highway, that big traffic snarl? Backtrack to Fairburn road. Two miles down is our farm. You'll see the mailbox. The name is Greene. Hyah!" She says as she takes off with Lori.

Daryl is stunned with a million thoughts running around in his head. But the biggest one is 'what is Rick's hurt?'. He snaps out of it when the walker that attacked Andrea sits up. "Shut up" he says as he shoots it in the head.

~~~~~

"Shot? What do you mean shot?" Dale asks when they tell him. "I don't know Dale. I wasn't there. All I know is this chick rode out of nowhere like Zorro on a horse and took Lori." Glenn explains briefly.

"You let her?" Dale asks Daryl. "Climb down out of my asshole, man. Rick sent her. She knew Lori's name and mine." Daryl says walking away to sort out his thoughts alone. And to pack up his stuff. He had to get to Rick as soon as possible.

He goes through his bag and makes sure everything's there. He has sweat on his face so he reaches to his back pocket to get his red bandanna- but it's not there.

He starts to panic and empty's his bag out to search through that, it's not there so he looks through his motorcycle pouch, but it's not there. The bandanna was the first ever gift from Rick, who gave it to Daryl on their first 'official' date. It was special.

'Maybe Rick has it again' he thinks to himself when he checks everywhere it could be. He noted to himself to ask Rick as soon as he can. That better be soon.

~~~~~

Rick is standing on the porch when Hershel comes to stand beside him. "This place is beautiful." Rick tells him as they look out over the fields. "Been in my family 160 years." Hershel says. "I can't believe how serene it is. How untouched. You're lucky." Rick tells him.

"We weren't completely unscathed. We lost friends, neighbours. The epidemic took my wife, my stepson." Hershel says. "I'm sorry." Rick tells him sincerely. "My daughters were spared. I'm grateful to God for that. These people here, all we've got left is each other. Just hoping we can ride it out in peace till there's a cure." Hershel continues.

"We were at the C.D.C., it's gone now. There is no cure." Rick tells him. "I don't believe it. When AIDS came along, everyone panicked. One boy came down with it and some parents took their children from school so they didn't have to sit in the same room." Hershel tells him. "This is a whole other things." Rick comments.

"That's what we always say- 'this ones different.'" Rick interrupts "well this one is." "Mankind's been fighting plagues from the start. We get our behinds kicked for a while then we bounce back. It's nature correcting herself, restoring some balance." Rick's quiet for a moment "I wish I could believe that." Rick says.

They hear a hoofbeats in the distance and look up to see Maggie riding along with Lori.

Rick goes down the stairs to meet her. Lori jumps off and cries. Rick hugs her and briefly explains that Shane went to get medical supplies.

He stand in the doorway while she climbs beside Carl, whispering into his ear. Rick takes her hand and let's her be near her son.

~~~~~

Rick goes to stand up from giving blood but falls back down. "Slow. Slow." Lori tells him. "How many transfusions?" Lori asks him. "Two. Only two." Rick tells her.

They go out to the kitchen and Hershel hands Rick a glass of orange juice to drink. "Okay, so I understand, when Shane gets back with this other man- Otis- the idiot who shot my son." Lori says. "Ma'am, it was an accident." Hershel tells her. "I'll take that under advisement later. For now he's the idiot who shot my son. Okay, as soon as they get back you can perform this surgery?" She asks. Hershel nods. "I'll certainly do my best."

"Okay. You've done this procedure before?" She asks him next. "Well, yes, in a sense." He answers. "In a sense? You are a doctor right?" She asks him. "Yes, ma'am. Of course. A vet."

"A veteran? A combat medic?" She asks "a veterinarian." He clarifies.

"And you've done this surgery before on what? Cows? Pigs?" She asks "I- I have- I have to sit." Rick says falling into a chair. "You're completely in over your head, aren't you?" Lori says. "Ma'am, aren't we all?"

~~~~~

"I won't do it. We can't just leave." Carol says. Daryl resists the urge to just leave without them, he wanted to get to Rick.

"Carol, the group is split. We're scattered and weak." Dale tries to explain to her. "What is she comes back and were not here? It could happen." Carol justifies.

"If Sophia found her way back and we were gone, that would be awful." Andrea says. Daryl think's to himself for a moment before nodding "okay. We got to plan for this. I say tomorrow morning is soon enough to pull up stakes. Give us a chance to rig a big sign, leave her some supplies. I'll hold here tonight, stay with the R.V." He says, he can hd out for one night, he tells himself.

"If the R.V. is staying, I am too." Dale says. "Thank you. Thank you both." Carol thanks them. Daryl nods to her, not really comfortable with being thanked. "I'm in" Andrea says next. "Well, if you're all staying then I'm-" Glen starts to say but Dale cuts him off "not you Glenn. You're going. Take Carol's Cherokee." Dale tells him.

"No. Me? Why is it always me?" Glenn asks. "You have to find this farm, reconnect with our people and see what's going on. But most important, you have to get T-Dog there. This is not an option. That cut has gone from bad to worse. He has a very serious blood infection. Get him to that farm. See if they have any antibiotics. Because if not, T-Dog will die, no joke." While Dale was talking Daryl went to his bike and opened the pouch, pulling out Merle's stash.

"Keep your oily rags off my motorcycle." He says throwing the rag that was on the bike at Dale. "Why'd you wait till now to say anything? Got my brothers stash." Daryl says while digging through the bag. "Crystal, X. Don't need that. Got some kick ass painkillers. Oxycycline. Not the generic stuff neither. It's first class. Merle got the clap on occasion." Daryl says and then walks back to his bike to be on his own again. He was upset about not being with Rick tonight but he knew sacrifices had to be made, if that sacrifice is cuddling with Rick, so be it.

~~~~~

"Pressure's dropping again. We can't wait much longer." Hershel tells them. Rick steps forward, holding out his arm. "Take some more. Whatever he needs. Then I'm gonna go." He tells them. "Go? Go where?" Lori asks. "He said five miles. They should be long back by now. Something's gone wrong." Rick tells her.

"Are you insane? You're not going after them."

They start arguing but he decides to listen, Carl needs him. he just hopes that Daryl will get here soon, because he can't do this on his own.